This looks very promising work. Vibration harvester will have plethora of applications where its cost will be justified.
Fusion of vibration harvester with MEMS may provide solution to micro scale implantable bio-medical devices. With this, you may not need to come back to hospital to change battery after few years. At other end, infant will have their toys always powered. They may not need help from grownups. And there are remotely located sensors in forests and oceans always powered and collecting data. I will eagerly await its availability.

Excellent idea. I am looking forward to seeing Intelís wireless power marketed soon http://blogs.intel.com/research/2008/10/rattner_the_promise_of_wireles.php
Though this is based on Teslaís work, it will be cool to such a product. I think to some extent, Palmís touch charger was a cool device :)

As with most energy innovations, the cost/payback calculation needs to be run. Many of my remotes seem to work for the shelf life of the batteries (3-5 years), while one remote needs batteries every 6 months. The vibration harvesters would probably not be cost effective for the more efficient/less frequently used remotes; while they would have to be less than 4-6x the cost of AA's or AAA's for the less efficient remotes to break even.

This is a great idea to keep our earth GREEN. When I read the above article, my mind came across a recent news about a football stadium where the audiences can generate electricity for lighting by stepping on and off on where they watch the football game.

This sounds like a very good innovation especially for gadgets like TV remote. It will at least ensure some calories burnt for the couch potatoes apart from saving the hassle of replacing those AA and AAA batteries every now and then. The days of automatic wrist watches which worked on movement of wrist are back! the spring is getting replaced by a capacitor.

In conjunction with unveiling of EE Timesí Silicon 60 list, journalist & Silicon 60 researcher Peter Clarke hosts a conversation on startups in the electronics industry. One of Silicon Valley's great contributions to the world has been the demonstration of how the application of entrepreneurship and venture capital to electronics and semiconductor hardware can create wealth with developments in semiconductors, displays, design automation, MEMS and across the breadth of hardware developments. But in recent years concerns have been raised that traditional venture capital has turned its back on hardware-related startups in favor of software and Internet applications and services. Panelists from incubators join Peter Clarke in debate.